Lost Mage, Found Heart
by lordlosslove
Summary: What if you woke up in the middle of Skyrim without your memory. A girl is in a sticky situation but is given hope when a hunter saves her life and offers to help her. Step by step she learns about Skyrim and even meets the Dragonborn himself, who just so happens to be a normal person. But will all of this lead to who she really is?


**LLL- People are going to hate me because I have a lot of other fics I haven't updated but when I have a story in my head I have to at least start it. I'm sorry. That's how I am. This is my first Video Game fic. I love skyrim so... yeah. Enjoy and Please review. Since this is my first game fic, I'd love the feedback. I do not own Skyrim. P.S the girl in the cover pic is the main character.**

I squint my eyes open and the first thing I see is a light blue sky and a moon. Then another moon not too far from it that is light purple. Stars decorate the sky and suddenly my mind catches up with the present. A brisk breeze blow through the air. I sit up and look down at my body. I'm wearing brown clothes. They are really nothing more than rags.

I then take the time to observe my surroundings. On my left is a heavily mountainous wood and on the other side, the trees begin to thin. Suddenly my heart races and I start to panic. I have no idea where I am. I don't even know who I am.

What is my name? How old am I? With little success I try to calm myself and stand up. I decide going to the more wooded side of the land is a bad idea. This thought being processed. I start walking.

After about what appears to be 4 minutes I come to a river. My hopes immediately leap. If I follow the river I might be able to find civilization and get a few answers. I trudge to the river and bend to my knees. Cupping my hands, I take a sip of the water and more hope fills me. "The water is fresh!"

Just as this thought crosses my mind all of my pride is crushed when a roar cuts through the air. My eyes widen and I look to where the monstrous sound came. To my left, only 10 meters away on a stone ledge is a large brown bear. Immediately fear causes me to get to my feet. That choice wasn't the best because as soon as I make this action, the bear's eyes are on me.

Without a second more of hesitation I make a run for it. The bear's feet punch the ground as he takes pursuit and it shakes me to the core. I go into the wood and try to dodge around trees in hopes to lose the bear but this doesn't help at all. The beast only sounds like it is getting closer to me.

Tears start to cloud my vision as I realize my fate. I'll die before even knowing who I am. Suddenly a loud screech sounds through the forest followed by a thump. I can't hear the bear's pursuit anymore but my feet don't stop moving.

I glance back and as soon as I do this I run directly into a tree. The impact sends me to the ground and I grab my arm as the sting runs through my shoulder. I see that the bear is laying on the ground unconscious. I look around for who or what might have taken it out.

That's when I hear footsteps from my left. I look over and an armored man is walking towards me. I scurry back a bit but not enough to escape. He doesn't look much like a threat. He reaches me and looks down. His hair is black and his eyes light green. He holds a bow in his hand and has other weapons attached to his waist.

"What are you doing way out in these parts? It's dangerous." I don't say anything. I simply look at him, adrenaline running through me. "Who are you?" Still I don't respond. "Do you speak the Nordic language?"

I swallow my fear and open my mouth to form words. "Y-you killed it." I look over at the bear.

He glances back and shrugs. "Yeah. I watched it chase you so it wasn't too difficult."

"You _watched_ it?"

"Well I was following it. I didn't want to kill it so early but I guess I'll just have to start from scratch now." Nothing he is saying makes sense to me. "So, what are you doing out here? There are worse things than that wandering in these woods."

"I don't know. I don't remember anything. I don't know where I am. I don't know who I am."

He raises an eyebrow. "Really? Well, tell me this. What is that?" He points his finger to the left.

"A tree…?"

"And that?" He points into the sky.

"A moon… I think."

"Ok," he sighs. "You have general knowledge so it must be specifics that you don't remember. What's your name?"

"I don't know."

"Ok, important specifics that you don't remember." He studies the surroundings and sighs. "Well I guess there's no helping it. Let's go." He reaches his hand out to me. I look at it curiously and study his broad build. After a few seconds of waiting he looks down at me. "What? You don't want to get out of here? It's getting late and being out here at night isn't fun." I grab his hand and follow him. We make our way back to the river. Unexpectedly, he hoists me up and wades through the water, dropping me down on the other side.

I walk next to him as we continue up and around rocky hills. My feet sting being that I'm not wearing shoes. I had been running barefoot from the bear and now they are cut up. Since the adrenaline has gone down the pain is almost unbearable against the stones, but I dare not complain.

After walking for close to 2 hours we come to a short cliff and a stone walk way is below us. In the distance I see huge mountains and atop them are walls. Only the roofs of towers peek above them just barely. The sky reflects off of the water below. Callum sighs. "We're almost there." The land is beautiful. Anything in my memory is fuzzy to a point where I can't get a visual at all. This is the most amazing thing I've ever seen as far as I'm aware. "Let's go!" Callum starts walking and I follow behind him slowly, silently wincing with every step. He soon looks over his shoulder at me. In one swift movement he scoops me up and start carrying me. "If you were having a hard time you could have told me."

"But I…"

"Just hush. You weigh no more than two logs."

I don't debate and allow him to carry me. 10 minutes up the path he speaks. "So what do you remember?"

I search my thoughts. "I remember the sky is blue and the grass is green. I know about bears and wolves. I know that I can't breathe under water."

"Do you know what color your hair is?"

I reach on my head and pull the messy pony tail around the front of my face. "It's red."

"OK. Then what about your eyes?"

I realize where he's going with this and look away from him. "No…"

"They are blue. A really soft blue." Still, I don't look at him. His smile is genuine and it bothers me. It isn't long before we reach the end of the pathway. The walls tower magnificently above our heads. We'd passed some horse stables a while back but now we have arrived at some large metal doors. Two guards stand on either side of them. They both turn their heads and look at us. Callum ( he told me his name along the two are walk) puts me down. "Can you bare?"

"Yes. I was fine before you picked me up."

One of the guards walks a little closer to us and I become worried. Am I not allowed to be here? "You're back a little later than usual," the uniformed man states

"Yeah," Callum replies. "I stumbled upon something unexpected."

The guard looks at me and then back at him. "You must have a lot of coin on you for this one."

"No! No! It's not like that! She just needs some help. That's all. She's lost her memory."

"Right. So have you heard about what's going on?"

"With who exactly?"

"The College of Winterhold and Ulfric. It seems that the college has some rogue necromancers who have it out for the dragonborn. Ulfric won't have it." The guard leans in closer but doesn't really lower his voice. "I'm not supposed to tell you this, but an attack on the college is being planned as we speak."

"What! Why!? They are independent. They barely have a place in skyrim lead alone the war."

"It seems there has already been trouble within Ulfric's ranks. They say it was an infiltration done by the college to try and sway the ways of the stormcloak's actions. We imperials are keeping out of it and letting events play as we like. As long as nothing happens with our men."

"Doesn't that seem a bit farfetched?"

"I don't know. But watch your back. Things are starting to get weird."

"How does the dragonborn feel about this?"

"Not sure. I haven't really talked to him about it."

"Ok. Well thanks for the information. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Maybe not. I'm off duty on Loredas and Sundas."

"Right. Then see you Mondas!" With that I follow Callum through the large metal doors and inside of the walls.

"What was all of that talk about a college and a dragonborn?" My attention is immediately dragged away from my own question when I catch sight of the inside.

"Welcome to Solitude! The best capital in Skyrim. Or at least in my opinion." There are buildings everywhere. They are made out of mostly stone and wood. People walk around and children chase one another. I follow a slow steady pace as I take in my surroundings. The sun is setting on the large town and the vendors in the market are packing up. Leaning on a nearby building is a drunk man. Cat… It's a drunk cat. He stumbles in front of Callum and me.

"Well I see you've brought home a sweety!" His words are slurred and hardly comprehensible.

"It's not like that Ryland."

"Sure it isn't." The drunkard winks at me.

Callum rolls his eyes and grabs my arm, pulling me along. "That drunk Khajjit is Ryland. Keep your distance from him if you can manage and don't give him any alcohol."

"O-ok…" We walk a little farther to a house where he pulls out the key and lets me in. Again my eyes are taken by beauty. Torches are mounted to the wall, illuminating the space. There is a fire with a pot. The tables are covered in flowers and different types of food while books are piled onto shelves against every wall.

"And this is my humble abode. My man cave. My sanctuary." He walks across the room and hangs all of his weapons on a mount on the wall.

"Why are you showing me all of this?" I finally ask.

"Well isn't it obvious? I'm going to help you until you can get your memory back. You can stay here for as long as you need."

"By why would you do that? You don't even know me."

"It's the right thing to do. Have you forgotten kindness as well?"

I look around the house. "Where are we again?"

"Solitude. One of the capitals in Skyrim."

"Skyrim?"

"Right," Callum mumbles. "Memory." He points at the table in the middle of the room. "Take a seat!" He leaves me and soon returns with 4 books. With a thump, he plops them onto the table and sits across from me. He stares me in the eyes. The only sound is the crackle of the fire nearby. His green eyes bore into my supposed blue ones. He then opens a book and I see a map.

"This," he says, placing his entire hand on the page, "is Skyrim. It's the kingdom we live in. And this," he then points to a small icon that looks like a wolf, "is Solitude and it's the capital of the hold we are currently in. There are 8 other holds throughout Skyrim. Eastmarch, Falkreath, The Rift, Haafinger, Hjaamarch, The Reach, Winterhold, and Whiterun. Each of them have their own capital." He points to each symbol as he teaches me. After about an hour and a half I know everything there is to know about the holds, races, magic, animals, organizations, etc. My mind is at a standstill as I stare into space trying to process everything I've just learned. He looks at me curiously. "You alright?" I nod slowly and he stands. "Time to go shopping!"

"What?"

"You need some new clothes." He pulls my arm and drags me out of the house. "I might take you to the shrines as well. You're pretty beat up."

We make our way through Solitude. A navy tint is draped over the skies and the stars compliment the moon nicely. I am taken into a small building near the main gates. We walk to the front where I see a desk and two females. They have pointed ears and red eyes. I dig in my head to try and remember what they are. Elves. But what kind? Are they the bad ones? The younger looking one raises an eyebrow at me.

"Well look who's here. The walking fashion mistake."

Callum rolls his eyes. "Listen Taarie, I'm not here to fight with you. I need some clothes for my friend. I have the coin."

"Argh!" She gasps loudly, causing me to take a few steps back. "She's an atrocity! Where did you pick her up? A hay heep?"

"No, east forest next to shadowgreen cavern." Her expression goes stale when she realizes he's being serious. The elf then walks around the counter and stands in front of me. She eyes me intently. Then she grabs my arm and pulls me into a back room. I only look back soon enough to see the glint of a smile on Callum's face before the doors close. After 20 minutes of _decisions _I have been dressed in new wardrobe. There is a huge fur collar around my neck with eccentric greens, golds, blues, and oranges running down my body. The entire outfit is extremely bulky.

I walk back out into the main room to Callum and his anxious smile quickly turns into a shocked frown. He face palms. "Taarie, I wanted her to have simple fresh clothes. Not look like a rainbow cave bear threw-up on her. And what in the name of sithis is on her head?" I attempt to look up, personally not knowing what was on my head other than a hat. He sighs. "Do you have anything less conspicuous?"

"This is the latest and highest in fashion. She wouldn't look good in anything but this. Or would you prefer to have her walking around in rags? I could easily not sell you anything."

Callum sends her a death glare but then looks at me and his expression softens. "Fine. How much?"

My eyes widen. What is he saying? Taarie smiles and I throw the hat onto the floor. Without regard to her gasp or who's around me, I strip the dress. Now standing only in my underwear and bra I grab my rags, pulling them over my head. Callum looks at me in disbelief. "What are you…"

I interrupt, turning to Taarie. "I don't like those clothes. I can barely move in them. And I'd walk around naked before I let you bully Callum out of his money." I turn from her, grabbing Callum's arm and trek out of the building. Even after we've gotten outside, I continue to walk, fueled off of anger.

"Whoa. Whoa. Whoa." Callum grabs my arm and stops me. I turn to him and look at him in his light eyes. "Thank you," he smiles. I don't say anything. I don't know what to say. "You stood up for me even though you don't know me."

"You saved my life. You're taking me in and trying to get me clothes. Putting up with such terrible people. That was far from the least I could do."

He places his large hand on my head and ruffles my hair. My ponytail was taken down when the evil elf tried to do it. It's relatively long. Flowing well past my shoulders. "Well again, I thank you. But now you are still in rags."

"Hey Callum!"

The two of us look over to see a lady walking towards us. She appears to be Imperial. Maybe? Callum waves at her as she approaches us. "Well, well, well. I never thought I'd see you here. What business do you have?"

"Nothing important really. Fihada and I are trading some material and merchandise."

He places his hand on my shoulder and I look up at him. "This is Adrianne. She is a blacksmith from Whiterun. The best out there is you ask me."

"Don't flatter me. So who is this young lady?"

"Not sure. I stumbled upon her while I was hunting. She doesn't have her memory. I went to Radiant Raiment trying to get her some clothes but you can probably guess how that went."

"Yeah. Hey! If you need something for her to wear I'm sure I've got something back in Fletchers. I brought some stuff over that I'd be willing to spare for such a great friend."

"Really!"

"Just follow me."

The two of us are on her heels as she leads us to another shop. Inside is bigger than the last but darker. A dark skinned man with a light Mohawk walks up to us. "What's the deal Adrianne?"

"I'm giving Callum some things. It's nothing."

"Hi Fihada!" He waves. The redguard grunts and goes on about his business.

I raise an eyebrow. "What was that about?"

"He's not too fond of me."

"Why not?"

Adrianne walks over to me with a few things in her arms. "Because Callum always brings his business to me. On top of that his speech skill is nonexistent. Here, try these on. They should fit perfectly." She hands me heavy armor and underclothes. I slide them on. The bottom of the armor is like a skirt that comes above my knees. It's silver and underneath is a tight black fabric. The top covers my shoulders in heavy armor and the rest in a light metal. The boots have fur inside of them and are sweet relief on my feet.

I look in a mirror next to me and smile. "It's perfect."

"It's not as strong as imperial armor but it'll do you well."

"Thank you very much."

"It's nothing. Plus this is just a demo item. I just recently started creating styles of my own. Who knows, maybe one day they'll actually be popular."

I smile at her. "I'm sure they will." I look over at Callum and his eyes are unfocused but he is looking at me. There isn't a smile on his face but he isn't frowning either. I look down at what I'm wearing, suddenly uncertain. "Is something wrong with it?"

His eyes snap open as he returns to reality. He looks off to the side, a forced smile on his face. "No. It looks great." Hearing him say this is reassuring but not so much convincing. The blacksmith gives him a few more outfits for me. "Thanks Adrianne. I can always count on you. I think I'll see you later. I've got a long day tomorrow. I'll pay you back for this."

"Don't worry about it. Take it as me repaying you instead."

We say our last goodbyes and I'm soon following him outside. The two of us walk quietly through the shadow cloaked streets of Solitude. I clear my throat nervously and it cuts through the silence like a dagger. "Callum, what do you do?"

"I'm a hunter. A treasure hunter."

"Treasure hunter?"

"Yeah. I go in caves, dungeons, and bandit hideouts taking whatever I think has value."

"Isn't that illegal?"

"I call it innovative. And what would you know about laws here in Skyrim?"

I shrug my shoulders, feeling like I spoke out of place. "Nothing…"

He places his hand on my head as we walk up the stairs to his home. "Don't sweat it." When get in the house and he hands me my new wardrobe. "I'm afraid this house only has two rooms. There is mine that is upstairs and the other is down in the basement but I don't want to make you…"

"Don't worry about it," I interrupt. "I'm fine in the basement."

"Ok. Get some rest. Tomorrow we are visiting the Temple of the Divines."

"Ok."

"Just go down the stairs and to your right. You can't miss it."

"Thank you." He starts walking up the stairs. He's been acting strange ever since we left Fletcher's. Before he's fully up the stairs I call to him. "Good Night." He stops in his tracks, not looking down at me.

"Good Night."

I make my way down to my temporary room. It's a little dusty but nothing unbearable. It isn't long before I am snuggled into the small sack on the floor. Soon I'm fast sleep.

* * *

I wake up the next morning quite early and attempt to prepare food on the fire. I burn myself about 7 times but it's nothing I can't handle. I hear Callum's footsteps as he trudges down the stairs. They slide lazily against the stone. When he enters the kitchen area he halts in his footsteps. He stares at me with a straight face for a few seconds and I at him. Then he smiles weakly, sleep still overwhelming his expressions. "I actually forgot you were here. I thought it was some weird dream."

Hearing this bothers me but I don't make it an issue, looking back at the heat pot. "Are you hungry?"

"Starving. What'd you whip up?"

I sit a bowl in front of him as he sits at the table. "I'm not entirely sure. Try it."

He looks at it and sips it with the spoon. "It's actually good but it could use some salt."

My shoulders slump. "I thought so but you didn't have any."

"It's alright. I still think it tastes great. Have you eaten?"

I smile at him and lie. "Yes. I ate before you came down." I tried eating but every time I swallowed something I just got sick. I don't want him to worry or put more effort into me than he already has.

Within an hour we are walking the streets of Solitude again. The sun is just rising and the markets are already set up.

"What is the Temple of the Divines?"

"It's where people in Solitude and all over the kingdom go to be blessed and cured by the shrines." I don't ask any more questions and wait until we've gotten there to see it with my own eyes. On the way there, I see a lot of imperial soldiers but when we go inside it is peaceful. I end up choosing to be blessed by the Shrine of Arkay because it increases health. Immediately I felt the difference. It was like a miracle. I could actually feel the physical healing in my feet.

We then walk back through Solitude in the direction of the house. "OK, I'm going out today. Here." He hands me a sheathed dagger. "Just for protection. But I don't want you leaving the walls of the capital." I'm ready to debate this but 5 guards run past us in hurry. They go to the large house next to Callum's. We end up stopping to see what the commotion is. "That's where the dragonborn stays." The guards frantically knock on the door, hoping for an answer. Callum leans against the stone wall. "Why such haste men?"

One of the guards looks back. "There has been another incident with the rogue necromancers from the college."

"What do you guys care? Aren't they trying causing the stormcloaks trouble?"

"This time they attacked an imperial camp."

"Well that's bad."

The front door to the house finally opens and out walks a relatively young male. He looks to be about my age, however old I am. He has long light brown hair and dark eyes. And he looks pissed. "What do you guys want?! I'm tired."

"Adventure doesn't rest my friend!" Callum yells up to him.

The dragonborn glares down at us. "Stuff it, Callum."

I lean closer to Callum. "Who's the asshole?"

"Remember that prophetic, powerful warrior who can talk to dragons that I told you about yesterday. That's him. His name is Ralem. He's short tempered and fun to fuck around with." One of the guards takes the liberty of explaining things to Ralem.

"They request an audience with you."

"After clearly voicing that they want me dead, they would like me personally meet with them?"

"It isn't the college that wants you dead. It is random rogues. The college wants to sort things out and make sure their relation with you is separate from those rogue. The person requesting your presence is a Dunmer name Dietrich Rhodes."

My mind leaps at that name and a face slightly appears in my head. A memory. Although not that clear, it's something that I might know on my own. My entire body now buzzes with adrenaline. The dragonborn leans against the door seal. "Fine, but I request a follower."

"I'll go!" I jump, raising my hand for attention.

Everyone looks in my direction. Callum's mouth hits the floor. "What!" I walk up the stairs to the door.

"And you are?"

At that statement my movements come to a halt. I still don't know anything, but this is the best lead I've got so I need to try. "I'm Victoria."

"Okay Victoria, and why should I let you accompany me?"

"Because I know Dietrich!"

Before I can even see the dragonborn's reaction I am scooped off of my feet and carried away. Under me, Callum trudges away from the scene. I hit him repeatedly on his head, not intending to hurt him but just show him that I'm not happy with his actions. He puts me down when we are out of ear shot of the dragonborn. "What are you doing!?" I yell.

"I should be asking you the same thing. Are you crazy! Do you know how dangerous this could turn?"

I grab his arms and force him to look into my eyes. "Callum, I remembered something! It's the name. Dietrich! It means something and I know it. There's no way I can get memory back if I'm trapped within these walls."

"That's why I'm here. I can look into it for you. I will ask around."

"You can't. I won't let you. This is a battle that I'm going to fight whether you like it or not. I need to know the truth of what happened to me." That being said I walk away from him and back to the stairs of the dragonborn. It seems as if they were waiting for my return. I stand as strong as I can in my light armor facing the morbidly faced male. "I will accompany you. I'll do whatever you ask of me if you will allow me to travel with you to meet the representative of the College of Winterhold."

He looks into the sky. "I don't know how…."

"If she goes then I'll go!" Callum enters sight and Ralem raises an eyebrow. A cocky smirk shows onto his face. "Now things are getting interesting." He walks past the guards, slowly approaching us, or better yet, Callum.

"What is this? The great hunter Callum offering to escort me on a journey that could entail death. I'm almost honored. But not exactly." His dark eyes then burn through me. "I do have my own life to consider. So I will not let you accompany me unless you can prove that you will actually be of some use rather than in the way…. Like Lydia… Oh Lydia," he sighs.

"How do you want me to prove it?"

"Fight an imperial soldier and win."

"Deal."

"To the death."

"What!"

"You only win if they die."

Callum steps up. "No! That's ridiculous."

"Deal." I growl. They both look at me with surprised eyes. "I'll do it." What really matters right now is my past and future. I can risk one life for that…. Right?

"Ha," Ralem smiles, "I didn't even tell you that the man is already on death-row so he was going to see the chopping block soon anyway. At 6:00 today be in the imperial court yard. I'll see you there." He goes back up the stairs and into his house, slamming the door. All of the soldiers are mentally debating if they should knock on door again to get him out.

I on the other hand, I am overflowing with adrenaline. I will fight tonight and prove that I'm worthy of traveling with the dragonborn. Suddenly I see Callum walk away. I follow him. "Hey." He doesn't answer me, continuing to walk. "Hey, answer me!" It isn't until he gets into his house that I grab his arm and force him to look at me.

"What is your problem!?"

"You are! Why would you ask to do something like that?"

"He's already on deathrow. He's going to die anyway!"

His glare is painful. "That's not what I'm talking about! This crazy mission you suddenly want to take on. It's too dangerous. You're going to get yourself killed. Anyone who wants Dovahkiin dead is beyond the power of a normal person."

"You don't even know if I can beat that imperial soldier."

"Everyone can beat them!" He takes a deep breath in an attempt to lower his voice and temper.

"I need to do this. It's the only lead I have on my memory. On who I am."

"I'll do it for you. I will ask around if you'd just stay here where it's safe."

"This is something I need to do and see with my own eyes."

Callum walks up to me and grips my arms tightly. "I'm here! You don't have to do everything on your own Rahleah!" As soon as the sentence slips out his eyes go wide and he freezes.

My breathing shallows as my heart rate becomes uneven. The atmosphere has suddenly become hard to breath in. "Who's Rahleah?"

He lets go of me and walks to the door. "I'm going out." That being said, he walks out and the door shuts with a slam.

I can't help but feel guilty for pushing a sensitive button. On the other hand, I can't fall back now. This is something that I need to do. Just as I'm walking back to the door someone knocks at it. Although it isn't my house, I take the liberty to open it. Standing there in thick black armor is none other than the dragonborn himself.

"Hello Victoria."

"Hi?" I raise an eyebrow. He doesn't say anything more. All he does is look at me. "Why are you here?"

"To give you guidance."

"Oh…?"

"I'm going to the Imperial Courtyard now to get in some training. I want you to come along. So you can practice a little."

"Uhm… Ok."

I walk out of the house, closing the door behind me. He watches me curiously as I start walking. "Aren't you going to grab a weapon of some sort?"

I stop in my tracks and look at the dagger on my waste.

"Don't tell me that's all you have."

"Then what do you want me to tell you?"

He sighs brashly. "You've got to be kidding me." I hear a cling and turn around to see him removing a sword from his waste and a bow and arrows from his back. He gives them to me. "Here, just use these for the time being." He starts walking and I next to him. The sun beams down on my head and I flip my hair behind me. "How long have you known Callum?" He asks me.

"I met him yesterday."

"What? Only yesterday?"

"Yes. He saved me from a cave bear and is now offering me his help."

"That's quite unlike him."

"Why do you say that?"

"He's a selfish man. Treasure hunters keep everything to themselves. I never thought I'd see the day that he'd actually help someone. I've asked him to accompany me on assignments many times in the past. I've even offered to pay him but he's rejected me every time. I don't see why he said yes for you." Ralem looks at me again. He even takes a few steps back to get a good view. "Well I guess you are kind of like Rahleah."

I snap to attention. "Who is Rahleah!?"

"I guess he wouldn't tell you. She was his lover. A woodelf and extremely beautiful. She died about a year ago. She wasn't a soldier but she was stronger than all of them. She went off on a request to stop an organization. Here's the thing. She was a stormcloak. Callum is imperial all the way. When they weren't sparring they got along great."

"How did she die?"

"No one knows. Her body was never found. Callum begged her not to take the assignment from the beginning but the coin was too good for her to turn down. Plus she never looked away from a good challenge. He beat himself up for weeks. Feeling guilty that he let her go. A couple months after her death he was back to himself, going on treasure hunts. He can't fool me. He's been out there looking for her. He thinks she's still alive. I told him he's wasting his time and he just laughs and acts as if he has no clue what I'm talking about."

I sigh. "So that's why he took me in."

We walk through a large archway. There are dummies, targets, and uniformed men sparring. "Don't feel down about it. It's a great opportunity for me. Why'd you offer to come by the way?"

"My memory is gone. You were the first lead to helping me get it back."

"Oh, so that's how it is. Then you better prepare well for this evening. You could lose your life."

"No. I won't." I hold up the sword that he gave me upright in my hands. The weight is noticeable but nothing that I can't handle. Ralem and other imperial soldiers stand against the wall watching me. I brush them out of my thoughts and focus my energy. I don't know who I was but I will figure it out. I swing the metal blade to the left side of my body and then the right. I continue to swing and jab as if I'm actually fighting someone. Something in my heart opens up and everyone around me disappears. I grab the dagger from my waist and dual wield the weapons. It is unbalanced but nothing I can't handle.

The sword is emitting a slight red glow. I swing towards one of the dummies and the steel makes contact. Immediately it ignites into flames. I take a tumble backwards, dropping the sword and get down on one knee. In one swift movement I have the bow and an arrow in my hand, aiming for bulls-eye. I release and when it pierces the fabric lightning explodes from the arrow. I'm starting to lose track of my thoughts. I don't even know how I'm doing all of this. It' instinct. It feels right.

I drop the bow and concentrate the energy in my hands. A purple glow emits in my palms. It is warm and fuzzy. The power feels good. After charging for long enough I release everything I've got. The crowd of citizens, soldiers and travelers behind me gasp and others scream.

I don't take much notice in it as I watch a person leap out of the violet portal that I have created. It is a stone female covered in molten lava and flames. She is beautiful as she looks at me. She then raises her hand and a ball of fire forms. I attempt to move and attack but I fall to my knees, too weak to even keep my eyes open.

The screams of the other people flow through my ears like music.

"Everyone get out of the way!"

"Move it!"

There is a loud yell. Or is it a shout? "IIZSLENNUZ!" Nothing that I can understand. My senses slowly slip away from me as I lose consciousness.

* * *

My eyes start to open and my head is pounding. Eventually my vision catches up with me and I see I'm in a dimly lit room. I sit up slowly and a hand rests on my shoulder, gently pushing me down. I see Callum hovering above me with a concerned look on his face.

"Wow. Impressive," a voice says from my other side. I look and see the dragonborn leaning against the wall. "I didn't expect you to be up for a couple days but you recovered in an hour. Who would have thought that there was so much necromancer in you?"

I look at him curiously. "What are you talking about?"

"Don't tell me you don't remember setting the entire courtyard on fire."

I look to Callum for answers and he still looks worried. "Victoria, your memory is gone but what you did was something that took skill. Years of dedicated training."

"Can someone please tell me what the hell happened?"

"Your one handed and dual wielding weapon skills are high, well beyond that of a soldier. You were able to you wield enchanted weapons with ease and accuracy. You then conjured a master level Flame Thrall."

"Flame Thrall?"

"Do you remember when we talked about magic and I told you that there are levels to it. You conjured a creature that only master level conjurers can make. A flame atronoch that doesn't have a time limit for how long it stays conjured. You're not a normal girl Victoria."

"And because of that," Ralem smiles, "you may be of some great use against necromancers from the college. I'll let you come with me without the challenge tonight. Instead, we will depart tonight." He walks to the door. "Good bye Callum. I will be seeing you soon."

Callum only glares at him. I sit up on my own but pain shoots through my head. I grab my hair, but that action doesn't really help. Callum sits on the bed and I realize I still don't know where I'm at. "Where am…?" Just as I ask this question, Callum throws his arms around my neck. My eyes are wide and I gasp from surprise. His embrace is warm as he hugs me.

His fingers knit through my hair. His cheek rubs against mine and my eyes are wide.

"C-Callum…"

"Is Mara punishing me? I was worried about you when I saw the crowd. I haven't even known you for a day. What is wrong with me?"

I gently pull away from him and place my hands on both sides of his face. I make sure we're making direct eye contact. "I remind you of Rahleah. That's fine!"

"No! It's not like that. I mean, sure, when I saw you by the river I thought you were her. But you two are completely different. Still, everything you do gets my attention. The way you blink, the way smile, the way you swing a sword…. the way you breathe I just don't want you to get hurt."

"Don't feel the need to watch over me. I am experienced and now there's one thing that bothers me. I might hurt you and I don't think I can handle that."

"How could you possibly hurt me?"

"Look at yourself! Just being with you is dragging you down. And I don' know who or what I am. When I was practicing and I used the magic, it felt amazing! I felt alive. I felt like myself but it's clearly something out of the ordinary."

"You're suggesting that I leave you alone for my own good."

"Yes."

"Not a chance. It doesn't matter how hurt I become, I will see this through to the end." He puts his forehead to mine. "I won't make the same mistake twice."

"I can't stop you." I pull away from him. "So I guess it's just time to prepare."

"Prepare?"

"I need better weapons. I also want to see what magic I can do and what my limits are."

"Fine," Callum says, standing up." We will start getting ready."

Within 20 minutes we are out of the house and on our way to who knows where. I'm just following his steps. We stop in front of the dragonborn's front door. Callum exhales all of his pride and knocks on the door. There is no answer and he knocks again. Still no answer. Now I start to kick the door continuously. After 9 kicks the door swings open.

"What!"

"We need to ask you a favor," Callum states.

"Wow," Ralem jeers. "It's been a while since I've heard Callum become a _We_. Speak what you request of me."

"Victoria needs weapons."

He looks confused. "So what? Why come to me?"

"I know you have a huge stock of enchanted weapons. Those would suit her best."

"What about you. You're a hunter and you're telling me you've got nothing that she can use?"

"I sell my merchandise for coin. I know you've got more than enough so quit being selfish."

"How do you come to my house requesting something and speak anyway you please!?"

I take the liberty to step into the conversation. "Ralem! Please. I need to be sure I'm worthy to fight by your side."

His eyes narrow and he wears a cocky smile. "Since you put it that way then I'm willing. Callum, you should really get some training in speech from her. It can take you a long way. Please. Come in." We step in, not uttering another word. The inside of his house is much bigger and more magnificent that Callum's. My eyes are glued to everything in amazement. "The weapons are on the walls and in that chest. Go for it."

I unlock the chest and rummage through it. There are so many weapons that I can't count. I decide to choose a sword similar to the one I used earlier as well as a bow and glass arrows. I pick up some black armor that would look great on me. "Can I wear this?"

"Go for it. It's ebony so it's heavy. Make sure you can handle it."

That's when I start to question it and my eyes come across the perfect thing. They are long dark blue robes. I stand, holding them up to me. Without even asking I put them on, raising the hood over my head. A strong pulse shoots through the room knocking books off of shelves, cups, plates, and ingredients on the floor. Even Callum falls on his arse. It's perfect. The power I felt when I was practicing, It's back and it's beautiful.

"Ha, I think that's the one for you," Ralem says. "The Mage Robes. They don't have any armor but they increase your magical abilities."

"NO," Callum stands. "She's wearing armor."

"I'm wearing this," I tell him calmly. "I'm more comfortable in this. I can fight in this." He doesn't argue.

* * *

We spend the rest of the day preparing. I find out that conjuring is my best skill, but I'm also good with healing and destruction magic. Alteration magic is my weakest point and that bothers Callum the most. When we depart the silence is thick. We walk for close to two days. We encounter enemies and on some occasions I go overboard with the destruction but close to anything is edible so that wasn't really a problem. It turns out that Ralem isn't too bad of a guy. He's actually really funny.

He took the liberty to show me a lot of his shouts. With one of them he messed up the words and made it storm overtop of us. We were angry but got over it when he used a shout that made it stop snowing.

Finally we are approaching the randevu point. It is the base of a mountain path and it is just starting to snow. Large trees surround us and the only thing we can hear is the wind. Suddenly I feel as if I hear something else. It isn't exactly a sound but it's bothering me. It's as if someone is watching us. I lean over and whisper. "Hey, Ralem…."

"I know," he grunts.

He has taken out his sword. Callum also equips himself and I raise my hands and ignite them in flames, ready for anything.

"There. There. No need to get riled up. We come in peace. Or as much peace as you do Dovahkiin." Suddenly people appear in front of us. They are wearing mage robes as I am. Ralem sheaths his sword and so does Callum. I don't think we should let our guard down so easily but I lower my hands. There are seven people and they stand in an organized line, the leader, and person speaking in the very front. We regard them with caution. "I'm glad you agreed to meet with us."

"Why couldn't you send a letter? What is this all about?" Ralem growls.

"There is a possibility of it being intercepted. We need to treat the situation carefully." Each of the mages removes their hoods. The one in the front has long with hair and orange eyes. "I am Dietrich. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance." He is familiar. I definitely know him but my memory won't catch up with me. "The names of the men behind me are Han-Za, Lucret, Cocius, Adrari, Stenar and Ildoni. They are all Adept or under rank so they aren't too skilled. No need to bring extremely skilled mages right. Now how would you like to introduce you men?"

The three of us stand together and exchange eye contact. "I am Ralem, the dragonborn. This is Callum." I remove my hood when he gets to me.

"Soleanna!"**(Soul-Lee-Awe-na) **Dietrich gasps.

I make eye contact with him and he approaches me quickly. I don't know how to react to this. Callum pulls out a dagger. As he does this every other mage arms themselves. I put my hands up and a shield of flames cloak around me. Dietrich stops in his tracks. I try not to let my voice shake as I speak. "How do you know me?"

His eyes narrow. "What are you talking about? Soleanna. We've been searching everywhere for you!"

"I- I don't know who you are. My memory is gone."

"Your memory?" Suddenly Dietrich becomes furious and a sword appears in his hand, purple and translucent. He turns to Callum."What did you imperials do to her!?" I step in front of Callum.

"They didn't do anything. He saved me. If it wasn't for him, I'd be dead without a doubt."

"Who is she?" Callum demands. "Was she a student at the college?"

"Student?" Dietrich laughs. "No my friend. You are standing next to the most powerful conjurer in Skyrim." My cloak suddenly drops and I can see Dietrich clearly. He smiles and drops his conjuration. He walks towards me and this time I don't move. He grabs my hands. "It's great to see you're ok. Now we've got to work on getting your memory back."

There's something about him that bothers me. His smile. It's strange.

Ralem furrows his eyebrows, not liking the atmosphere. "Soleanna…. I've heard that name before."

**LLL- I hope you enjoyed. Please review.. Annnnd please excuse any spelling or grammar errors. ^_^ thank you. P.S If this gets enough interest i will change the picture, but it'd be a spoiler.**


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